Phase-change materials (PCM) are capable of transforming from a crystalline phase to an amorphous phase. These two solid phases exhibit differences in electrical properties, and semiconductor devices can advantageously exploit these differences. Given the ever-increasing reliance on radio frequency (RF) communication, there is particular need for RF switching devices to exploit phase-change materials. However, the capability of phase-change materials for phase transformation depends heavily on how they are exposed to thermal energy and how they are allowed to release thermal energy. For example, in order to transform into an amorphous state, phase-change materials may need to achieve temperatures of approximately seven hundred degrees Celsius (700° C.) or more, and may need to cool down within hundreds of nanoseconds. This presents a particular challenge for switching devices to prevent degradation due to high thermal energy while achieving fast switching times. Conventional PCM switches may fail to heat or cool fast enough for certain applications. Further other neighboring and sensitive semiconductor structures and components may be undesirably heated or suffer consequences from thermal cycling.
Additionally, the ongoing need for miniaturization introduces upper limits on driving voltages as well as overall device dimensions, often creating tradeoffs with parasitics associated with RF frequencies and resulting in performance tradeoffs. Accordingly, accommodating phase-change materials in RF switches can present significant design challenges.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a reliable low voltage and low parasitics phase-change material RF switches.